Short term initial demand for a (new) iPod may display a fad-like craze but there's nothing fad-like or fad-ish with the (original or current) Apple iPod. It is an evolution of a popular consumer electronics category.
The popularity of the iPod is an continuation of the popular portable music player market, debatably, started with the Sony Walkman portable cassette tape player. The market evolved with Discman(s) and other portable CD players.
Portable MP3 players are the successors and existed before the iPod. When the price/performance/ease of use bogeys were addressed by Apple with the iPod, it took off in popularity. It is more a trend and far from a fad.
Do you consider cellphones and computers as fads too?
Given the scandalous news that Microsoft used PowerMac G5s to demo Xbox 360 games, perhaps a better question is "Is the Mac going to replace your Xbox?"
http://www.macdirectory.com/4u/wire.fm$retrieve?value=4015443&field=serial&html=wirelessdetail.html
Relish the irony!
If the quality of podcasts is your primary complaint, then what do you have to say for [url=http://www.kcrw.org/podcast/]"professional" podcasts[/url]?
Sure, then podcasts become nothing more than timeshifted radio (the new "wireless"?). But like Tivo and like the Internet, it's content you want, when you want it. And isn't that really the point?
[url=http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/radioshark/index.php]RadioShark[/url] anyone?
The Black and Red color scheme on the U2 iPod is to match the cover of their new album as welll as classic U2 albums: War, Rattle and Hum, The Joshua Tree, ...among others. (Those were the first that came to mind.)
And, haven't you heard? Black (and Red) is the new White. LOL
One other thing no one's mentioned: How readable is the iPod Photo's color screen when the backlighting is turned off?
iPod: The Fad That Refused to Die?
Is the XBOX Going to Replace Your Mac?
Why Podcasting Will Fail
iPods 4G Anonymous